Established stars kept on their toes
TOP PERFORMER: Rebecca Baker on her way to the New Zealand Schools junior 1500m title last December.
The established track and field stars shone on a clear evening at the Whanganui Secondary Schools Championships at Cooks Gardens on Wednesday and a number of new ones emerged.
Liam Back (Collegiate), who at the weekend won three New Zealand Under 18 middle distance titles, added four Whanganui Schools titles to his impressive developing athletics CV.
On Tuesday evening, he won the Steeplechase and on Wednesday added the 800m (2:01.81), 1500m (4:07.00) at Under 16 level and the open 3000m, Back also ran the anchor leg of the winning 4x400m team.
His weekend at the national championships and his busy Whanganui Schools schedule completes Back's preparation for the World Schools Cross Country in Paris early in April, and he departs for Europe next weekend.
Genna Maples (Collegiate) – also winner of medals in Hamilton – claimed four Whanganui titles in the Intermediate Girls (100m, 200m, Long and Triple Jump) and anchored the successful winning relay team.
The 200m was particularly impressive – Maples winning in 25.23s into a stiff head wind ahead of team mate and fellow Manawatu-Wanganui Athletics team member Tayla Brunger (25.59s).
Two athletes unavailable for the New Zealand Championships last week impressed, both producing classy performances.
Rebecca Baker (Whanganui High) took the 1500m and 3000m with strong front running performances in both – the 1500m especially impressive with her 4m 46.56s time giving her the race by 18 seconds.
Emma Osborne (Collegiate) headed off team mate and Saturday's New Zealand Under 18 Champion Tayla Brunger, winning by 3/100th of a second in 57.30.
Osborne also won the 800m in 2m 18.66s.
Ethan Cox (Whanganui High) looked outstanding in the Intermediate grade, winning the 100m/200m double (11.80s and 24.18s respectively) and also won the Long Jump with 5.83m.
Other athletes who won three or more titles included Nathanael Kirk (Whanganui High), who with his arm in plaster took the 300m (41.16s), 800m (2m 16.82s) and 1500m (4m 4.22s).
He is clearly an athlete with an exciting future.
The talented Tadgh O'Connor (Cullinane) won his specialist High Jump (1.61m), the 200m (27.8s1) and Triple Jump (10.36m) to be the another standout Junior Boy.
Kane Hinga (City College) was the other athlete to win three titles (junior boys) with victory in the Long Jump (5.36s) the Shotput (10.85m), and Discus (31.77m).
Double winners in the junior girls were Sophie Williams (Collegiate), who claimed the 100m and 200m, while Ana Brabyn (Collegiate) got the 300m and 800m, and Emma Ferguson (Nga Tawa) won the 1500m and High Jump.
Olivia Pickford (Rangitikei) won Shotput and Discus while Lucy Brown (Collegiate) got the Long and Triple Jumps.
In the Intermediate Girls, Sophie Andrews won both the Hammer (Open) and the Shotput.
Senior Girls saw Tasi Taaititi (Rangitikei) also had a throwing double – the Shotput and Javelin, with latter being an excellent 31.75m.
Hayley Artz (Ruapehu) won both the Long and Triple Jumps.
Olivia Seymour (Collegiate) took the 100m/200m double, with the latter in an excellent 26.37s, while team mate Sophie Redmayne had a 100m/300m hurdles double.
In the boys grades, Pati Leo (Collegiate) won both the Discus and Shotput, the latter with a personal best 12.95m.
Joseph Sinclair (Collegiate) won the 800m and the 300m hurdles, also with a PB.
He also finished second to Travis Bayler (Whanganui High) in the 400m with a personal best 51.10s.
Bayler, who had finished fourth at the national championships over 400m, set another personal best by stopping the clock in 50.70s.
While I have reflected on title winners and multiple title winners, there were as mentioned above individual event winners, many of whom were placed in other events at national level which have not been featured in this column.
In Bayler's case, the 400m was especially meritorious, as it followed his second placing over 800m just over an hour earlier.
Although entries were lower for the Whanganui School Championships, the competition in many events was tougher and the standard higher.
The two largest schools in terms of entries also gained the most titles as Collegiate's 43 titles was a drop of 15 from last year, which is a reflection of stronger competition.
Whanganui High had a much stronger showing than in 2017, winning 19 titles.
It was encouraging to see smaller schools from the region featuring.
Whanganui will field a strong team at the North Island Championships, to be held at Cooks Gardens on April 7-8.
By Alec McNab
Wanganui Chronicle 16/3/18